Week 6

I worked in several different groups in different classes when I was getting my Bachelor's degree. I also have been a part of some small group discussions during trainings. The one that was the hardest to leave was my one class in college where we were a part of the group for the entire class. Almost every assignment was done as a group so we had a lot of time to get to know each other and became close. Luckily, many of these people were in the same degree program so we would still have classes together, but it was not the same as when we were working together. I can still remember one group session at a training that I was so thankful when it was over. We were split up into small groups at a training where we had to discuss and review our literature to answer some questions and then we would share with the whole group. We had one member who felt she had to disagree on every point and was very rude in her disagreements. By the end we had to just override all of her disagreements and write down what the rest of the group agreed on just in order to finish our task to share with the whole group at the the training. While we were sharing our answers she would yell out what she thought it should be. It was very embarrassing and frustrating. We could have had good discussions and learned from each other's different views and perspectives, but she was not willing to listen to other viewpoints and her manner of insisting that she was right made it difficult to listen. 

I do not think I have ever had any closing rituals in any of the groups that I was in and I am not even sure what I would consider for a closing ritual.

I think adjourning is an important stage of teamwork because it brings a closure to the group and helps to show an accomplishment. The adjourning stage from my group in my college class was when we received our final grade. This helped us see our work together had meaning and was productive. The adjourning phase for the other group during the training session was when we shared our answers for the rest of the group. It provided an ending to the discussion and allowed us to move on to the next part of the training. 

Week 5

I had an issue with a supervisor who had recently started at the center. Within her first week she had given us a list of things she wanted changed in our classroom because she said they would not pass ECCER-S even though the classroom had just passed the year before with the exact same set-up. There was no discussion involved and she did not receive our input before she gave us the list and told us we had a week to fix everything. My co-teacher and I tried to discuss the issues and explain our reasoning why we did not feel anything needed to be changed especially since there was only a month left in the school year. We were told that she was the supervisor and we were being insubordinate by questioning. I should have used the NVC skills to help me through the situation by not taking it personally. I felt that by her saying the classroom was wrong she was questioning mine and my co-teacher's abilities. I let my annoyance and frustration with this situation affect my interactions with her in the future and I never built a relationship with her. Without this relationship there was never a sense of working together and I continued to feel that any issues were a personal attack. I chose to leave this center because I always felt there was conflict. Looking back, I should have worked harder to communicate. 

Has anyone else had an issue with a supervisor? Were you able to resolve these conflicts and if so what skills did you use to accomplish this.